Microsoft is testing a new Windows 11 Start menu with floating widgets

Microsoft has quietly begun testing an intriguing change to the Windows 11 Start menu that could introduce a floating panel full of “add-on” widgets. Windows Watcher Albacore discovered the new Start menu feature in the latest test builds of Windows 11 that Microsoft has released publicly.

While Microsoft has not yet announced this feature, “Start menu companions” appear to be a way to allow developers to extend the Windows 11 Start menu with widget-like functionality that sits inside a dockable floating island. next to the Start menu. . It looks like developers will be able to create apps that provide widget-like information through adaptive cards – a platform-independent way of displaying blocks of UI information.

These companions will be configurable in the main Windows 11 settings section, with the ability to install multiple companions and toggle to enable or disable them. Albacore mentions that these companions appear to be very web-centric, just like Windows 11 widgets.

If Microsoft decides to move forward with this Start menu feature, it could be the answer to the loss of Live Tiles that were removed in Windows 10X and Windows 11. Live Tiles, the animated, inverted icons from the Windows Phone days, offered widget-like information in the Start menu, but it was not widely supported by application developers. Microsoft first introduced them in Windows 8 when the company was trying to bridge the gap with its Windows Phone operating system. Live Tiles are designed to be “look and go,” so you can quickly glance at a phone or Start menu and see the information you need.